So after many weeks of waiting, the battlebox finally arrived from Wayland! Unfortunately my order was short a Vassal of Menoth (not included in the battlebox but part of my order) but at least the Choir of Menoth arrived. The issue here was it was marked as sent! Hopefully this will be resolved soon. Anyway, once I get down to working with these guys I'll do a full review on the battlebox and hopefully Vince will give his impressions as well. For now, let's see what it includes.
The box itself is pretty neat with some nice visuals on both the front and back. When we open it we get a diluge of little baggies filled with plastic as well as a bunch of other goodies. Not only do you get the models but:
- latest edition of No Quarter magazine - much better than Games Workshop's White Dwarf
- bendy ruler - best things about battleboxes, being able to whip your 'friends,' literally
- information packet on Warmachine which gives you some basic info about the concept of Warmachine and what's been included in your little box
- quick start rules for those of you who are learning as you go
- all the stat cards for the models - this may seem obvious but they are there
- four 16mm dice in case you don't have any (and if you don't, why didn't you buy 3++ dice?)
- a rubber band which the stat cards come wrapped in - important for inflicting harm upon your 'friends'
- and most importantly.... the mini-rulebook. Everyone knows the value of these right?
The models come in little baggies with the Menoth Cinerators and Jacks each getting their own whilst the Khador Jacks and Man-o-Wars are together in two different bags. Both casters are in one bag - it took me several minutes to figure this out thinking that we had been jiped pScorhsa but no she's there, hidden under the pKreoss model.
All in all an excellent buy for around $100 depending upon where you live though with one obvious lack - terrain. I loved this about the older Games Workshop starter sets where you got some terrain to kick-start your gaming and it's a real shame Island of Blood and the Warmachine Battlebox didn't include any. Hopefully this will be an inclusion in the future. Oh one other lack sorry - no templates. You can make your own easily enough with a scanner and piece of paper but it would have been nice to include some clear templates for quick and easy use.
A quick note on the quality of the models. There's a fair amount of mould release and lines you need to get rid of which are bit tricky with their placement and the plastic isn't like what many are used to from Games Workshop. It's much more bendy like resin and this means some of the items in the box are bent out of shape. A quick dunk in some warm water though and you can bend them gently back into shape. Otherwise the models are a cinch to put together with different size holes and pegs to make sure each bit goes in the appropriate spot. More on this when I build them but for now...*abandons to play with plastic toys.*
And for those of you care - here is an update on the Reckoner Jack'o'Lantern. The lighting is terrible but you get the general gist of the move here - the yellow has been toned waaaaaay down! Still only really the top part is anywhere near completion but looking a lot better IMO.
